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W. J. HOFFMAN. WATER WHEEL.

No. 74,089. Patented Feb. 4, 1868.

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WILLIAM J. HOFFMAN, 0F GROTON FALLS, NEW YORK, ASSIGNOR TO GEORGE v. HOFFMAN.

Letters Patent No. 74,089, dated February 4, 1868.

IMPROVEMEN '1' IN WATER-WHEELS.

TO ALL WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:

Be it known that I, WILLIAM J. HorFMAN, of Croton Falls, in the county of Westohester, and State of New York, have invented a new and useful Improvement in Water-Wheels; and I do hereby declare that the fol lowing is afull, clear, and exact description of the same, reference being bad to the accompanying drawings, making a portion of this specification, in which- Figure 1 is a horizontal section of a water-wheel constructed according to my invention.

Figure 2 is a plan view of a portion of the same.

Figure 3'is a side view and partial section of the some portion thereof. 7

Similar letters of reference indicate corresponding parts in all the figures.

This invention relates to that class of water-wheels in which it is sought to utilize not only the direct action of the water upon the buckets, but also the reactive force of the water in leavingthe wheel; and the invention consists in buckets of a novel construction arranged, in relation with inclined pussa-ges'atthe upper and lower sides of the wheel, in such manner as to secure the desired, result in a very superior'degreel To enable others to understand the construction and operation of my invention,I willproceed to describe it with reference to the drawings;

A indicates the scroll, placed eccentric to and surrounding the wheel, and furnished with the inlet-chute B. The central part, 0, of the wheel is furnished with buckets,.A*, which for the greater portion of their length are tangential, as shown more fully at a in fig. 1, but which at their outer ends are made nearly or quite radial from the vertical shaft B* of the wheel, as represented at b in the same figure. The upper and lower sides of the spaces between the buckets O are closed by the top and bottom disksc d, each of which is furnished near its periphery with an annular portion, 0*, projecting upward or downward, as the case may be, and having formed in it inclined passages, e, the said passages of each of the disks c-d communicating, one with the internal space just'm'entioned of each bucket at the innermost extremity of such space. I I V The water-being admitted to the wheel throughtbe chute B, strikes first the radial outer portions 6 of the buckets, and acts directly thereon to turn or propel the wheel, after which, the water passing farther around within the scroll A, acts upon the tangential portions a of the buckets with what may he termed a glancing action, exerting a still further force upon the wheel, and then,as-it approaches the. narrower portion of'the scroll, passes outward into a trough, the inclined passages e acting upon the inclined surfaces at the upper side of those passages at the top of the-wheel, and the lower sides of those at the bottom thereof, in a manner similar to the action exerted upon'the tangential portions a of the buckets, as just set forth, and finally, in leaving or e passing out of the said passages, the water, by its reaction against the surrounding water oragainst the atmosphere, exerts a reactive force to still further rotate the wheel, so that by these means a very large proportion of the entire or theoretical power of the water is utilized.

What I claim as my invention, and'desire to secure by Letters Patent, is- The tangential buckets A*, constructed with radial or nearly radial end-portions, b, and arrangedwith reference to the inclined passages c near the periphery of the wheel, substantially as and for the purpose specified.

W. J. HOFFMAN.

Witnesses:

J. W. Coouss, A. Le Chane. 

